Fuqua Receives Recognition as Special Olympics Platinum Partner

Raleigh, N.C. – Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business has become the first platinum partner of Special Olympics North Carolina with a donation of $100,000 through its annual MBA Games to benefit SONC, according to SONC President Keith L. Fishburne. During the past 15 years, The Fuqua School of Business and its sponsors for the MBA Games have donated more than $1 million to Special Olympics North Carolina.

Funds from statewide partners are used to pay for Special Olympics athletes to compete at area and state-level competitions. “Since athletes are never charged a fee to participate, the Fuqua School of Business’s gift enables SONC to provide first class sports training and competition for thousands of athletes throughout the state,” said Fishburne.

The Duke MBA Games is an annual fund raising event organized by students at the Fuqua School of Business. The event is a sports competition involving teams from the top business schools in the country. Donations are raised through corporate sponsorship of each team. The 15th anniversary of the Games was celebrated April 3-6 in Durham. In addition to financial support and involvement with the MBA Games, many Fuqua School of Business students volunteer, and coach Triangle Area Special Olympics athletes.

"Fuqua is a place where we encourage our students to care as much about the community as they do about developing their own careers. Participation with Special Olympics has provided us with an ideal opportunity to foster that relationship. The recognition as a statewide partner is a tremendous honor, not only for Fuqua but for the entire Duke family," said Fuqua School of Business Dean Douglas Breeden.

The Fuqua School of Business was founded in 1970, and is named for industrialist, philanthropist and statesman J.B. Fuqua, of Atlanta, Ga. With an annual enrollment of 1,000 students in its business degree programs, it is one of the youngest top-tier business schools in the United States. Fuqua’s Executive MBA programs were recently ranked fifth nationally by US News & World Report and its Daytime MBA program was ranked seventh.

Special Olympics North Carolina’s other corporate partners are: Gold Level: Knights of Columbus, American Airlines, Cingular Wireless and Time Warner Cable; Silver Level: Progress Energy, Procter and Gamble, Civitan International, CIBC World Markets, ABB, Henry Wurst, Inc. and Renaissance Creative Media, Inc.; Bronze Level: N.C. Pest Control Association, The Eastern Band of the Cherokee Nation, Aramark and Marriott.

Special Olympics North Carolina offers year-round sports training and competition for more than 32,000 children and adults with mental retardation or a closely related disability. These athletes inspire greatness through their success and provide motivation to the thousands of coaches, sports officials, local program committee members and event organizers involved in Special Olympics statewide. SONC offers Olympic-type competition in 18 sports on local and state levels.